Railway surface stock-guard



(No Model.) A 4 2 sheets shet 1. L. S. GARDNER. RAILWAY SURFACE STOCKGUARD.

.No. 472,574. Patented Apr. 12, 1892.

'1': numus PETERS cm, PHOTO-HTML, wuumm'an, n. c.

(No Model.) 4 2 Sheets-Shet 2; L. S; GARDNER;

RAILWAY SURFACE STOCK GUARD. N0. 472,574. v In Patented Apr.. 12, 1892.

UNITED STATES LEVI S. GARDNER, OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN.

RAILWAY SURFACE STOCK-GUARD.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 472,574, dated April12, 1892.

Application filed July 2, 1891. Serial No. 398,213- (No model.)

Toall whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, LEVI S. GARDNER, of Detroit, in the county of Wayneand State of Michigan, have invented a new and useful Improvement inRailway Surface Stock-Guards, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to railroad surface stock-guards; and it consistsin the improvements hereinafter described and claimed.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective viewof a stock-guard embodying my invention with the ends cut away to showits construction more distinctly. Fig. 2 is a bottom plan view of one ofthe sections of which said stock-guard is composed. Fig. 3 is a detailview in. elevation showing the method of securing the guard to the rail.Fig. 4 is an end elevation of one of the sections, showing a modifiedform of construction. Fig. 5 is a detail view showing the constructionof the device when corrugated sheet metal is used. Fig. 6 is anisometric view illustrating the method of forming and securing the ends.a: m, Fig. 6; and Fig. 8 is a detail View illustrating an alternativemethod of securing the parts together.

Similar letters refer tosi milar parts throu ghout the several views.

A B is astrip of sheet metal about nine feet long, bent so that itscross-section has the general form of the letter L. The flange A,forming the longer leg of the letter L. in cross-section, and the flangeB, forming the shorter leg, extend at right angles to each other, and aflange b is turned up at the end of the flange B to extend in adirection par. allel to the flange A. The flanges A B are united by aportion at, extending in a direction which forms an angle of aboutthirty degrees with the flange A and about sixty degrees with the flangeB. To form the guard a number of these strips are united together, theirlengths extending in parallel directions. The flange A of one strip isplaced upon the flange b of the next strip, so as to overlap and extenda short distance beyond the flange b, and is riveted in this positioneither by rivets in the ordinary way or by strikinglugs out of oneflange, extending them through holes in the other flange, and clinchingthem, as shown in Fig. 8.

Fig. '7 is a section on the line- When it is desired to form the portionof the guard which lies between the rails F F of one piece, the middlestrip 0 is formed so that in cross-section it has the form of twoletters L, the longer legs of which are united at their ends, so as toextendin directions which form an angle of about one hundred and twentydegrees with each other, as shown in Fig. 1. I prefer, however, forconvenience in handling, to form the guard in sections having a widthequal to about one-half the distance between the rails, so that theentire space to be guarded will be occupied by one section placed uponeach side of the track and two sections between the rails. When thusconstructed in sections, that one of the sheet-metal strips of which theguard is composed, which is at that side of the section at which theflange A comes upon the outside, has said flange extended and bentdownward into a vertical position, as shown in Fig. 1, in the sectionsoutside the rails. That side of the-sections at which the flange B comesat the outside should be placed next to the rails.

D is a metal rod passing under the strips A B a b, of which the guard iscomposed, turned up at the ends, and bolted to the outside flanges ofthe guard and riveted between the ends to the portions a of said strips.

H are metal rods similar to the metal rods D and similarly fastened,except that the ends which come toward the rails when the guard is inposition are not bent up or bolted to the guard. Holes are formedthrough the portions or of the strips of which the guard is composed toallow rain-water to escape.

In order that brake-chains, hooks, or other things depending from apassing train may not catch upon the guard, the ends of the strips A B ab are turned down, as shown in Fig. 6, so as to present a surfacesloping in the direction of the length of said'strips. The corner of theflange B is turned down along the line It 2'. The corner of the adjacent flange A is then turned down along the line j upon the turneddowncorner of the flange B and riveted thereto.

The ends of the sections of the guard may be secured in place by drivingspikes M M through the portions a of the strips A B a 12 into the ties.

I secure the sections of the guard to the rails by placing the unsecuredends of the metal rods II above the lower flanges of the rails anduniting the end of a rod 11 upon the outside section of the guard, withthe end of the corresponding rod upon the inside section, by a rod N,which passes under the rail and is riveted to each of said rods II II,as shown in Fig. 3.

In localities where the stock-guard will be subjected to very hard usageI form my improved guard of corrugated sheet metal. In this case thestrips A I) a Z) will have the same general form as that abovedescribed, but will be bent into curved lines, as shown in Fig. I, sothat its cross-section will have rather the form of a letter J than of aletter L, and the flange B will extend beyond the flange A of theadjacent strip. \Vhen corrugated metal is used, the upper surface of therods D II will be curved in cross-section to fit into the corrugationsof the strips, as shown in Fig. 5.

The operation of the above-described device is as follows: Should ananimalattempt to cross the guard it would place its hoof upon theinclined flange A and the inclination of the flange would cause theanimals hoof to slide downward, thus bringing its leg forcibly againstthe narrow projecting edge of the adjacent flange A, or, where the formshown in Fig. -l is used, aga-instthe edge of the flange B, thus causingthe animal to draw back.

I am aware that surface stock-guards have been proposed in whichinclined surfaces have been employed, and I therefore do not claim suchconstruction broadly; but I am not aware that a structure has hithertobeen devised which may be made of sheet metal and yet form a' light,rigid, and durable apparatus that shall present no obstruction that maybe caught by a chain or other thing depending from a passing train andthat shall permit the draft caused by a passing train to sweep outleaves or other matter which would otherwise accumulate between theridges and render the guard useless.

A surface stock-guard constructed as above described has the above-namedadvantages.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is-- 1. A railway surface stock-guard consisting ofsheet metal bent into ridges so that the upper corner of one ridge shalloverhang the lower part of the adjacent side of the next ridge andhaving the general shape in cross section shown and the rods securingthe lower portions of said ridges together, substantially as shown anddescribed.

2. A railway surface stock-guard consisting of a number of strips ofsheet metal A15 a b bent so that their cross-section has the generalform shown,a flange A of one of said strips being secured to a flange Bof the adjacent strip, and a rod uniting the ridges thus formed,substantially as shown and described.

3. A railway surface stock-guard consisting of a number of strips ofsheet metal A B a Z) bent so that their cross-section shall have thegeneral form shown, a flange A of one of said strips being secured to aflange 13 of the adjacent strip so that the edge of one of said flangesshall extend beyond the edge of the other of said strips, and a rodpassing beneath and uniting the lower portions of the ridges thusformed, substantially as shown and described.

LEVI S. GARDNER.

Witnesses:

ALoNzo EATON, ELLIOTT .T. STODDARD.

